Brionee
by satrinity
Summary: When Brionee moves to Ireland, she isn't too happy. The internet connection in her house sucks, and she has no way to contact her friends back in New York. The only interesting thing is that strange boy with the ice blue eyes and the vampire smile...
1. Chapter 1

**Brionee**

This is my first piece on this site. Please be kind. I like constructive criticism,

but not outright flamers.

Don't be a jerk.

* * *

I do not own Artemis Fowl or anything connected to the series. I do, however, own Brionee.

* * *

R&R!

* * *

In this, Artemis is post-TTP, although he's still in school for some reason. I'm not sure why, just bear with me here. He may be a little OOC at times. This is A/OC, just to warn you.

* * *

Two years before, Bri had laughed at her friend Terra's complaining phone call from Texas.

"But, Bribri! I miss you all! Can you believe that I can't even use the _internet_ here? It's in the middle of nowhere!"

Brionee Ware laughed. "Ter, you're just socialsick. It'll pass. Before long, you'll have friends at school, and you'll be perfectly fine."

Brionee was socialsick now. They had not installed internet modems into their creaky old house yet, and she couldn't find her cell.

Well, maybe it wasn't _that_ old... but it had _no internet connection._ That was pretty much Bri's definition of hell. No facebook, myspace, gaia, not even her _vampire freaks_ account had worked. And she hadn't used _that_ since the Twilight craze had started. Hell.

"Bri, get down here! We need to register you to school!"

Brionee sighed as she trudged down the stairs to appease her mother. Carolyn Ware eyed Bri's outfit with distaste. "Hon, why don't you wear some _normal_ clothes for once?"

Bri looked down at her red ICP t-shirt, her skull decorated jacket, her artfully ripped jeans, and her black converse sneakers. _What's wrong with this?_ she thought. She shrugged and took a hairbrush out of her skull-themed purse, brushing her straight black hair. It fell to her shoulders and framed her face, highlighting her green, eyeliner-rimmed eyes.

Bri didn't always dress this way, of course. She tried to pick a different style each day. Yesterday had been sene. Today, she had meshed goth and emo due to difficulties in deciding what to wear. Who knew? Maybe tomorrow, she would just be herself. Normal, jeans-and-a-teeshirt Brionee.

Bri sighed as she climbed into the front seat of her mother's Mercedes, trying not to pay attention to her as she primped her wavy blonde hair and checked her red lipstick in the mirror. Rich they may be, but morning rush habits tended to stick with you after living as a normal-income, New York, mother-and-daughter family for eight years.

As they pulled out and her mother steered the car up the road, Bri once again marveled at the massive mansion that stood atop the hill to her right on their way to town. The place was an architect's dream. The exact type of place that Bri would have sketched, had she been holding her art pad and a charcoal pencil. She still had no idea who lived there, but it was obviously someone filthy rich.

It was just as this thought had entered her mind that the gates slid open, and a shiny Bently pulled out behind them, heading in the same direction. The windows were tinted to be very dark, and allowed no glimpse into it. _Darn,_ she thought. _If only..._

The car continued to follow them all the way to the school. Bri's eyes widened as it pulled into the drop-off area behind them. There was a kid in there?!

The front driver's side opened, and a gigantic man in a black suit stepped out, his eyes scouring the area for threats. His eyes landed on her for a few seconds before skipping to the other students being left at the school. He seemed to find the threat level satisfactory, because he went to one of the rear doors and opened it for someone.

The boy that stepped out looked younger than her by at least a year, but his piercing blue eyes told of deep knowledge. He had seen things that many people her age had never even dreamt of.

_Stupid,_ she thought as she tore her gaze away from him. He had locked eyes with her. _Creep people out by staring on your first day, why don't you._

She sighed as her mother called out a quick "Bye!" and drove off, leaving Brionee to enter the school on her own. She sucked in a deep breath and marched into the school, leaving the boy and his icy gaze behind her.


	2. School Daze

Chapter 2 of Brionee

Fyi, I do not own AF.

Sorry about the short chapter, 3 will be longer.

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Brionee sat on her bed, fuming. _Uniform?!,_ she thought. She had been called out on her outfit no less than three times that day at school. THREE. Tomorrow would be worse, because of the frumpy outfit that he mother had bought for her to wear. It had absolutely _no_ personality whatsoever. What was she supposed to do with _that_?

She sat up on her bed and scowled, trying to remember the location of her art supplies. She had put them into the wrong box while packing, and had no clue as to their whereabouts now.

She sighed and lay back down, trying to remember. Instead, her thoughts strayed to the boy that she had seen earlier. She had seen him quite a bit throughout the school day, even having an English class and lunch at the same time as him. She had asked a couple of the nicer girls, and they had filled her in on him.

His name was Artemis Fowl, but he was really Artemis _Junior._ He was filthy rich, as she had guessed, but he and his father were supposedly once criminal masterminds. He was a total genius, and had broken almost every teacher at the school. Even the councilors were nervous wrecks after a session with him. He was cold and condescending to every student there, and had almost no respect for others.

Bri frowned. That couldn't be right. She was sure that there was more to him; she just had to figure out how _much_ more.

She smiled in anticipation. Brionee Ware would procure his friendship, even if it killed her.


	3. Melting the Ice

Chapter 3 of Brionee

I still don't own AF. (yet...)

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The next day at school, Brionee wanted to crawl under a rock and die. Her outfit was so frumpy and horrific, she has asked me not to describe it for fear that Tyra Banks would fly to Ireland, track her down, and murder her for allowing herself to even set eyes on it.

The horror of 'The Uniform' was overshadowed, however, by operation: Friend to Fowl. She had even come up with a name for it.

She was pleased to see that her assigned seat, which had been given to her today due to the teacher's nervous breakdown the day before, was next to Artemis.

As she sat down, she acted as if she paid him no mind whatsoever. Sometimes it was best not to prod people, and he certainly did not look prodable. The teacher announced that they would be looking at Shakespearian poetry. She silently cheered. Poetry! Her advanced creative writing classes were coming in handy after all!

She waited as the teacher assigned groups. Pairs, to be exact. She made an even number of the ranks of LA students. When the teacher came around to her, he had a worried look on his face. He seemed to be contemplating whether or not to put her into a group with the only other free student, who happened to be Artemis.

Bri looked up at him from her desk. "I guess I'll work with him, then?" she prompted.

He frowned and nodded, turning to Artemis. "Now, please _try_ to work together with her, Artemis?" he pleaded.

Artemis sighed. "If I must." he allowed. The teacher released the breath that he had been holding and walked over to another group. Artemis began completing the first of the two worksheets about Shakespeare, not paying Bri so much as a glance.

She shrugged and took the other sheet. "I guess I'll do this one, then."

Artemis frowned and looked up. "I will do them both, if you do not mind. That way I can be sure that they are correct."

Bri smirked. "The teacher said that we had to work _together_, right? That means equal work. Unless you are implying that I know nothing about this topic, in which case, I will take that as a sexist comment."

Artemis seemed taken aback; it was obvious that people did not typically take an attitude to him and wave it about, as she just had.

"I was not implying that you-"

"Then don't say anything about it." she said, sliding the completed paper to the corner of the desk to rest alongside his. He picked it up, examined it, and replaced it without saying a word. Brionee allowed herself a small smile of satisfaction as he sat in obviously deep thought. Finally, she decided to make a move. "Advanced creative writing for four years. Poetry and illustration have always been my favorite. I'm Brionee Ware, by the way."

He glanced over to her. Anyone else would have seen a politely uninterested boy, but she saw past that to the surprise beneath. His blue eyes examined her as she waited for a response. She noticed that one of his eyes was slightly darker than the other. _Odd..._ she thought. He eventually turned away as the teacher approached.

Bri suppressed a chuckle as the man's eyes went wide as he saw the two different handwritings on the completely correct papers. This was turning into a decent day.


	4. Totally Unexpected

Chapter 4 of Brionee

Still don't own AF.

Saphire: And you never will.

Me: ALL RIGHT, LEAVE! COME BACK WHEN YOU'RE LESS ANNOYING!!

Saphire: Then, fine! I'll go get drunk and stare people down!

Me: Oh, yeah. You're an angry drunk, aren't you?

Saphire: Yep, yep!

Me: All right, story time!

* * *

Bri sat on her bed again in a completely different mood. It had been three days since she had made first contact, and she was already having semi-pleasant conversations with Artemis.

Bri smiled as she thought about him. He was a lot nicer than a lot of people thought, if you had any traits that could at least come close to his skill. Her poetry was her strong point, in this case.

She went to the box in the corner of her room and opened it; she had finally located her supplies the day before, and wanted to draw now. She took out her art pad and a blunt-tipped charcoal pencil and sat on her bed, sketching Fowl Manor. She had the basics memorized, and could make up the smallest details if she needed to.

She hardly noticed as two hours went by, and the sun began to set. She did notice, however, when a loud _thud!_ sounded outside. She jumped at the sound. Her mother was out and wasn't due back for two days, as she was at a conference for her new job. Bri was sixteen, and supposedly old enough to take care of herself. She paled. _Was someone trying to break in?!_ She thought. She ran over to her window, which overlooked the front lawn, and tried to see what had made the noise, expecting a man trying to force his way in the door. Instead, the sound's source made her eyes go wide and her jaw drop.

Hovering a few meters away from her window was a large reptilian... _thing._ With what looked like mechanical wings strapped to its back. It didn't appear to have seen her, as it was too busy paying attention to whatever had hit her door. It had what appeared to be a gun gripped in its hand. It suddenly turned and flew away, buzzing out of existence as it went. Bri gawked for a moment more before dashing out of her room and down the staircase, jerking the front door open.

What lay on the ground on the other side was definitely not human. It had pale green skin, pointed ears, was extremely short looking, and had a pair of _wings_ on its back. A hole was slowly sealing itself up in his side, and blue sparks raced about across his body, as they seemed to help him heal. Once the hole was closed, they died off, as if there was nothing left to supply them. He still had a myriad of cuts on his arms, and he showed no signs of waking. Bri took a deep breath, bent down, and scooped the creature up into her arms to carry him inside. He would do better away from the elements.

Once inside, she laid him upon a fainting bed in the den. He lay there for hours, not moving at all aside from breathing. Eventually, he stirred. Bri stared with wide eyes as he groaned and sat up, rubbing his arm where it was slightly bruised. He shook his head lightly, and opened his eyes. They widened in panic as he looked around, trying to figure out how he had ended up where he was.

Bri decided to try and establish communication. "Um, are you okay?" she asked quietly.

The... whatever he was ... jumped and stared at her with horror. "You're a human!" he squeaked.

Bri frowned. "Yeah. What are you?"

He appeared confused. He reached to his side and gripped the sleek gun that was there. "You didn't unarm me." he realized.

She raised an eyebrow. "No. I didn't even know you were armed. Now what are you?"

He seemed to consider for a moment before he shrugged and smiled. "I'm a sprite. The name's Chix. Chix Verbal."

Bri frowned. "Brionee Ware. Why the sudden change in attitude?"

Chix shrugged again. "Because once my rescue party gets here, they'll perform a mind wipe on you. You'll never even know I existed."

Bri was taken aback. They'd do _what_? She fumed for a few seconds, but decided not to press it. "So then, if I won't remember this, then you can tell me what happened that led to you appearing on my doorstep."

Chix thought for a moment. "I was doing a surveillance job down the road from here. A correspondent of ours had noticed a goblin with stolen LEP gear trying to breach the perimeter of his home. I was supposed to make sure that the guy was caught. Trouble was, the idiot started trying in midday. That's a goblin for you, though: stupid till the end. I chased him to here, but he pulled an illegal rifle. I guess I was shot, because I can't remember anything after that."

Bri nodded. "When I found you, those blue sparks were stopping, and I was worried that you might run into trouble if I left you outside."

Chix's eyes popped wide. "_What?_ My magic ran out?"

Brionee shrugged. "I guess. So, who was your correspondent?"

Chix sighed. "Someone up the road. Artemis Fowl."

That gave Bri pause. "The father or the son?"

"The son." Chix clarified.

Artemis was in on this?!


	5. Umm o kay?

**Chapter 5 of Brionee**

Thanks for the reviews, people! Oh, and thank you, Serial-Doodler, for noticing the mess-up thingy. I will try to go into update-overdrive (you AFC-ers will know what that means, as I am breaking out the Mt. Dew *evil grin*)

Also, thank you mtzBEN, for the constructive criticism. (Even if it was not meant to be that, I will still view it as such, so thanks.) The storyline may seem a little boring and Mary-sue/ Bribri-acts –kinda-like-Arty, but I haven't reached the main parts yet. The first dozen chapters or so are setup for the major plot twists. (There will be a great many of them, so expect at least 30 chapters.)

Sorry for the long intro. I'll try and combine chapters 5 and 6 for you all.

Brionee stared at Chix for a moment. Eventually, she shook her head and sighed.

Chix frowned. "What?"

Bri sat back in her chair and stared up at the ceiling. "I'm dreaming, that's what. I spent all that time trying to get his attention, and now my mind is making up crazy reasons for why he is so mysterious. Is this some subconscious way to tell myself that I'm getting obsessive?"

Chix stared at her for a moment before answering. "I guess that you can tell yourself that it's a dream if you want. How do you know Artemis?"

"School." she said in a bored monotone. "He's the only person there that I could consider to be remotely close to being a friend there. The others were too... preppy for my tastes."

Chix seemed amazed. "He actually acknowledged your _existence_?"

"Yeah. I was about as good as he was in a poetry project."

Chix was about to press this further, but a buzzing from his helmet distracted him. Bri had set it on the ground near him when she had brought him in. Chix scooped it up and jammed it over his head. Bri waited patiently as he nodded and exchanged words with someone in an unfamiliar language. Eventually, he ended the call and took the helmet off. He held it as he spoke.

"They're bringing the mind wipe machine. Pretty soon, you will be able to go back to how you were a bit ago."

Bri scowled. "What if I don't _want_ to forget?" she demanded.

Chix shrugged. "It's not your decision, nor mine. I do what the higher-ups tell me to." He looked out the window as a large, shimmering patch of air descended onto her front lawn. Chix stood and walked to the door, stopping and turning back to her.

"Thanks for the help." he said, before walking out and leaving Bri to wait for whatever fate she as destined for.

Brionee sat in silence as Chix left her house after giving his thanks. Moments later, a very short guy with pointed ears walked in, towing a platform that supported a machine of sorts and being followed by a few more intelligent looking ones. The cart bumped the door frame as it entered.

"Careful, Grub!" shouted one of the scientists. Bri sighed.

One of them came up to her and began examining her, whilst speaking. "Please try not to struggle, as it would do you no good and would only make our job more difficult." Bri rolled her eyes as he continued; stating that he was a technical supporter, and that he and the other two would be strapping the machine to her. _Fabulous._ She thought.

Chix watched from the doorway as they strapped the mud girl to the mind wiper. He felt sort of bad for her, and guilty. She had saved his life!

She didn't look too bad, either.

For a human.

Chix decided to try talking to Grub, while the techies strapped her down so that Foaly could work his technical magic. "Hey, Grub. How many techies does it take to screw in a mud girl?"

Grub gave him a quizzical look. "Umm, three?"p

Chix sighed. _So much for comic relief..._

He turned and watched an elf set up a screen, and Foaly appeared on it. The centaur looked the same as always, just without the tinfoil hat that he had worn a few years back. Chix avoided looking at the girl as they began scanning her brain.

A few moments later, Foaly gave a surprised whinny.

Chix glanced from the girl to the screen. "What?"

Foaly examined his data for a moment before speaking. "I've never seen anything like this before in a human. A benign tumor, very small, in her brain. It is completely harmless, but it is also preventing the mind wipe. It can't work with or around it."

Chix stared at her again. "What about a warlock? Could they do anything about it?"

Foaly shook his head. "I've already asked Qwan about it. He could tell from the picture that nothing can be done without endangering her life."

Chix frowned. "Is this rare in humans?"

"Not really. It's really quite common to have a small tumor or growth that stays with you, and affects you in no way. But this exact size and position, just enough to block mind wipe without endangering her... it's strange."

Chix did not know what that meant for them, but he did know one thing:

Bri was not getting her memories erased tonight.


	6. Trouble, With a Capital

**Chapter 6 of Brionee**

Okay, okay. I know that it's a random story. I'm sorry. Things just happen. Now, the thing with the goblins and Chix and the supposed coincidence… well, that's not a coincidence after all. I'm going to explain that later on. Actually, a certain bad guy will. (Serial-Doodler, don't you DARE spoil it. *^* Tweek is watching you.) Btw, it's 2-in-1 again.

Brionee lay on her bed again, but now it was for a whole other reason: The fairies had left her memories, but had also informed her of a tumor that was in her brain.

"Like cancer?" she had asked.

"Well," the centaur had replied. "Kind of. It's benign, and will not cause you harm. But it prevents us from using the mindwipe."

She shivered. Kind of like cancer? It was still there, benign or not. It creeped her out to think of it. So she didn't. Instead, she remembered the conditions that they set in order for her to keep her memories: tell noone of the fairies, do nothing to endanger them. "And," Chix had advised, "you may want to get into contact with Fowl. Just in case something comes up."

"I'm already in contact with him."

Chix had rolled his eyes. "You know what I mean."

So, here she was, watching the sunrise as she contemplated.

Later on in the day, she watched Artemis with caution as he strode into the Language Arts room. He showed no signs of knowing that she knew. She also knew that that didn't mean much, though.

He was silent as he sat down next to her. He waited a moment before he spoke. "I take it from the lack of a cheery greeting that something happened last night."

She smiled weakly. "I, ah, met some friends of yours last night."

He frowned. "Who?"

"His name was Chix Verbil." Artemis frowned, and she continued. "The other one was named Foaly. I only spoke to him."

Artemis' eyebrows shot up. "You've met Foaly. Then you know about the people?" He scowled again. "And yet you connected me to them."

"Chix mentioned that they knew you."

"Weren't they supposed to mindwipe you?" She nodded glumly. "Then why didn't they?"

She shrugged. "Apparently I've got something in my brain that disrupts it."

Artemis' expression softened slightly. "A tumor?"

"Yeah. It's... non lethal, but still... a tumor? In my _head_?" She shook her head in despair.

Artemis sighed as he sat in the back of the Bently as Butler drove him home. Brionee had discovered the existence of fairies. Had even spoken to Foaly! Artemis had had to endanger the anonimity of their society before he had recieved that... 'pleasure'.

Butler glanced back at him in the rearview mirror. His thoughts clearly showed on his face, because he decided to speak. "Did something happen, Artemis?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact, something did." He stared out the window as he spoke. "The girl that has moved into the home a little further down the road, Brionee. She... met some old accomplaces of ours."

Butler's searching gaze widened as he realized what that meant. "By accomplaces, you mean-"

Artemis cut him off as they pulled in through the gates to the manor. "We shall speak of it later, old friend."

Butler simply nodded and opened the door to the car, preparing to help Master Artemis out.

Brionee frowned as she sat upon her bed, sketching a portrait that was taking on some disturbingly familiar features. She scowled and tossed the artpad aside. She got up and paced, trying to think.

_Fairies are real, _she thought. _They have super advanced technology, big guns, and are totally BA. The tumor keeps them from erasing my memories, _she grimaced at that, _but why did they just leave me be like this? _A thought struck her. _Unless..._

She had felt paranoid all day, and now she knew why. She stalked over to her backpack and reached into the front pocket, pulling out her phontix mobile. She had picked it up a store a few days before; she had picked that particular brand to get back at a family member. Don't ask.

Just as she had expected, there was a piece attached to the back of the cell. It was almost invisible to her, but an odd ridge from hastily placed smart material had given it away. She pressed the 'on' button and spoke into it.

"Nice try, Foaly. You can hear me, right?"

She used the tips of her black stick-on nails to peel it off and place it on the back of her laptop, opening it as she did. An image of the centaur appeared onscreen.

Foaly frowned and shook his head. "How the hell did you find it?"

Bri smiled. "Never underestimate someone who draws for a hobby. We have awesome imaginations."

Foaly rolled his eyes. "Between you and Artemis, I don't know who scares me more." He smirked. That smile vanished, however, as a crash echoed from downstairs. "What was that?"

She scowled. "Hold on." Brionee snuck out of her bedroom and over to the edge of the staircase, peering through the slats in the banister. There was another of the ugly reptilian creatures, goblins, trying to right a vause that had been knocked over when his partner had stumbled over a bump in the carpet. She swallowed hard and dashed back to her room, closing the door and locking it.

"Two goblins, downstairs." she gasped.

Foaly's look of shock was replaced by a frown as he realized what she was saying. "Fairies forfeit their magic if they enter a human dwelling uninvited. You didn't invite them in, did you?"

Bri smacked her forhead as she remembered what she had said to Chix to allow the techies into her home. "The other day, I said 'the fairies can come in'. That's a little general."

"Yeah, it is. I suggest that you get out of there. Goblins can conjure fire." He began typing furiously. "I'll place a call to Artemis; maybe he'll send Butler out to pick you up. Try to get a start that way, and avoid those goblins at all costs."

"Why are they even _here_?"

Foaly sighed and shook his head. "When you find Artemis, have him fill you in on the Opal Koboi situation."

With that, the screen went blank. Bri quickly packed a small bag of clothes, grabbed her laptop and artpad, and climbed out of the window, using the ivy that grew up it as footholds. It was dangerous work, and it was by sheer miracle that she did not fall.

She quickly made her way to the main road and began running in the direction of Fowl manor, praying that the intruders would not follow her.


	7. Relations

**Chapter 7 of Brionee**

Thanks to all that have reviewed. It's really helped a lot.

Oh, and if you think that I'm just matching her par for par with Arty…

Wait for the rant in a few chapters. It's going to be great.

Brionee panicked as she saw headlights swing her way as she jogged down the side of the road in the dim twilight. She quickly ducked into the underbrush to her left, then berated herself as she climbed back out: The vehicle had been a Bently.

The window rolled down and a half-worried, half-amused Artemis smirked as she pulled leaves out of her hair. "You wouldn't happen to need a ride, would you?"

_At least he's polite about it._ she thought as she nodded and went to the other side to enter the expensive car. The driver, who was the same man that she had seen on her first day, glanced at her in the mirror before swinging the car around and heading back in the opposite direction.

She looked over at Artemis, who was pouring over a small laptop. "Did they tell you why I was running?" she asked.

Artemis nodded. "Of course."

She glanced through the window as they pulled up to the gate of Fowl manor. "Then why are we coming here? Couldn't this, I don't know, lead them to your house?"

Artemis sighed as he closed the laptop. "Almost every fairy under the Earth knows where my home is. As for the goblins, they are probably the most mentally undeveloped type of fairy, aside from Trolls. I would not be surprised if they had not even realized that you were gone."

She frowned as he got out of the car, and she followed. "But why were they after _me_?"

He didn't answer, simply gestured for her to come inside. He assured her that the house was unoccupied, aside from themselves; his mother had knowledge of the fairies also, and had convinced Artemis' father to come with her somewhere for the weekend. They could speak freely.

Two hours later, Bri sat discussing past events with Artemis. He had told her everything, from the kidnapping of Captain Holly Short, to his recent adventures in the time stream, and everything in between. Especially the parts about Opal Koboi, and how she may be behind recent events, such as Jon Spiro and Arno Blunt's prison escape, and the fact that four top LEP personnel had disappeared recently, including Wing Commander Vinyaya and the one that had been at her attempted mind wipe, Grub. They had simply disappeared.

Bri grew too quiet as Artemis described Spiro and the C-cube.

"What is wrong?" he asked.

She looked wary as she answered. "Ah, about that guy, Spiro." Not just wary; guilty. "If he knew about the fairies somehow, and knew that _I_ knew, then that would explain why they were after me." She took a deep breath. "Jon Spiro... is my uncle. He was probably trying to get to me because of that."


	8. Meeting Short

**Chapter 8 of Brionee**

Remember the thing from TEC? "A brother I actually LIKE?" That's Bri's dad.

I'm going to type 9 in a minute.

Bri typed furiously on the keyboard of her laptop as she sat in a rather comfy chair in Fowl Manor. She had not been online in a while, and needed desperately to catch up. She replied to messages on yahoo and facebook as she continued down the list of sites that she had compiled in her mind.

_Gaia, deviantart, piczo... what did I miss?_

She looked up as Artemis walked into the room. She closed out of the window and shut the notebook. He looked her in the eyes. "I've just confirmed that Spiro and Blunt have been sighted in various areas throughout America and, now, Europe. They are most likely searching for you."

Brionee nodded sadly. "That means that dad's probably missing still." She had explained to Artemis and Butler that his father and her "Uncle Jon" had been close in childhood, but had had a fight over business details, and her father had split from the Fission Chips Company before it had become big. He had helped Phonetix to achieve its status, and had thoroughly angered Jon Spiro. He could very well have a vendetta out for Bri's father and, by extension, her mother and herself.

Opal Koboi, or the past Koboi as Artemis had explained, would have grasped at straws in her position. She could very well have revealed herself to Spiro and proposed a plot to bring down the People and Artemis.

"He won't risk going public with his plans... not that that limits him much..." she muttered grimly.

A knock on the door echoed to them, and Butler strode through the room and opened the front entryway. Voices came from the area, one obviously feminine.

"Come in, Holly. Artemis and our guest are in the drawing room."

"Thank you, Butler." The girl came around the corner and greeted Artemis warmly, glancing at Bri.

She had auburn hair and was obviously well acquainted with exercise. She was also an elf, with pointed ears and a very short height. She scanned Brionee with mismatched eyes, one brown and one a very familiar blue.

Bri frowned and looked to Artemis. _How could I have missed __**that**__?_ One of his eyes, the one that had been 'darker' before, was brown. The same color as the elf, Holly. What had happened between these two?

"So, this is the human that can never be mind wiped."

Holly's voice brought Bri out of her thoughts. She held out a hand. "Brionee Ware."

Holly stared at her for a moment before taking her hand and shaking it firmly. "Captain Holly Short."

"Have the goblins that broke into her home been identified?"

Holly shook her head. "No, the DNA results won't come back until the team that Tro-, I mean, _Commander_ Kelp sent to check the area arrive there. They had to take a shuttle, while I got to ride the flares." She grimaced, giving Bri an idea of what she thought of doing this. She looked to Bri. "How many goblins did you say that there were?"

"Two."

Holly rolled her eyes. "Of course, they couldn't just send one. That wouldn't be viable for them. It would be like sending one stinkworm to find a library book. It doesn't get better when you add more."


	9. A Dark Meeting of Minds

Jon Spiro was not the sort of man to spend an excessive amount of time in prison. Any time, as a matter of fact. Prison was not his style. Being a certified (or _self-certified_) genious, and having generous mob connections, helped quite a bit.

He had spent only three years behind bars before good connections and a well-placed mole in the system sprung him by way of a few deleted files and some generous bribes. The process was really quite simple, considering the country in which he had been encarcerated.

God bless American government.

As it was, Spiro was currently languishing on a private island in the Pacific Ocean, far from prying eyes and spying officials. Alongside him, guarding his life as always, was none other than the recently released Arno Blundt. The New Zealander currently wore an expression that would have suggested an insult of some kind. The news that he had just received may have qualified.

"_Alive!_" Blundt roared, mashing the power button on the television remote that he held in one hand. The pictures on the screen retreated as if they were running from the behemeth of a man's wrath.

"What the hell is wrong now?"

Arno ground his steel teeth. "That... that Fowl brat was on the news for unveiling some new green machine." Spiro's eye twitched at the mention of the name. "You'll never guess who was behind him the entire time." Jon rolled his eyes; for Fowl to be involved and get Arno so riled up, he already knew.

"_**BUTLER!**_" he continued. "Butler! _The_ Butler! He was supposed to be dead, but now..."

"Yeah," Spiro agreed sarcastically. "The guy whose ghost got you to rat yourself out. I'll bet that you're just going crazy."

"Oh, yeah? Look at this." He punched the power button again. A live news feed from some convention somewhere showed up on CNN. Spiro seethed as he identified the teenager on the front podium, wearing a suit and showing off blueprints on a screen directly behind him. Artemis Fowl II, child prodigy and the cause of every problem in Spiro's life.

A few years back, the kid had called Jon up about an invention that would have destroyed everything on the current market. Spiro had stolen the C-cube and left Arno behind to take care of the kid and his bodyguard. Of course, he had not taken into account the chance that Fowl would have survived. This, as it turned out, was a good thing, as the cube could not be unlocked without the creator. All in all, the venture had been not only a disaster, but also a total nightmare. Not much was left of Spiro's fortune now.

Jon turned his attention back to the screen, making note of the gargantuan form lurking behind Fowl. Butler, the kid's bodyguard, was truly there, as Arno had insisted. If the guy knew what was good for him, Blundt would keep his yap shut and pass on the gloating.

"Going to check the perimeter, sir," he mumbled as Spiro glared at the screen with hatred clear in his expression. _Smart man,_ Spiro thought as the guard stalked out the door and closed it behind himself.

As the door clicked behind the bodyguard, a thought occured to Spiro. One that he had come back to time and time again, but had never truly found a reason for. A memory that had him thoroughly perplexed, of himself and Fowl in the upper reaches of the Spiro Needle in Chicago.

_"Really, Spiro. Did you think I would attempt a break in? Perhaps you thought I would fly in here with my fairy friends and magic your box away."_

Spiro had laughed. _"You can bring all the fairy friends you like, Arty-boy. Short of a miracle that cube is staying right where it is."_

The cube hadn't stayed where it was, _had _it. No, Artemis had been found in the inner chamber of the vault, every security system bypassed, the guards unconcious. It had been almost like... well, like magic. How had he done it?

And that mocking statement. Was there some sort of code there? Fowl was much too mature to be making such strange comments about things like fairies.

What the hell had the kid been getting at?

Spiro froze at the slight creaking behind him. 'Slight' implied someone smaller than his bodyguard, who was the only other person on the island right now. This could only mean that there was an intruder.

Spiro slid on his sunglasses and hoped that Arno would remember the code for immediate danger. He picked up his walkie and pressed the on button.

"I'm coming outside for some sun."

As he spoke the words, he reached beneath his chair and gripped his handgun. Jon flipped the rotating chair around to face the newcommer, only to find a young girl gripping a strangely shaped gun. Luckily, Arno was already behind her, having entered through the well-oiled side door, ready to incapacitate the strange girl with the manic grin.

Unfortunately, he was already too late.

The girl squeezed off a shot of orange energy that knocked Spiro out cold.


End file.
